Miniature structural components



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April 5, 1960 A. c. RIETZ MINIATURE STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS Filed Sept. 14, 1956 Tlc i.

3 Sheets-Shet 1 INVENTOR 43527 CZ. P/srz' ATTORNEYS April 5, 1960 A; -c. RIETZ MINIATURE STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 14, 1956 Z a n M mm nu a m V NT n M W av MTURE STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS Albert C. Rietz, Palisades Park, NJ. Application September 14, 1956, Serial No. 609,878

2 Claims. (Cl. 46-19) The present invention pertains to improvements in miniature building components.

An object of the invention is to provide a set or kit of miniature brick structural components made of a stone material which is strong, realistic in appearance, and adapted to retain accurate shape and dimensions even if subjected to abnormal conditions of heat, cold, or moisture.

A further object is to provide a set of the above nature including a plurality of differing monolithic components each representative of a pre-fabricated multiple-thick wall section, the diifering sections being adapted to be fitted accurately together in various arrangements whereby a wide variety of diiiering miniature buildings may be constructed.

A further object is to provide a plurality of individual stone bricks and half-bricks, corresponding in dimensions to the simulated bricks of the above sections, and adapted to be combined with the sections to further extend the variety of available designs, as well as adding chimneys, pilasters, columns and the like.

A further object is to provide the set with roof trusses, roofing sheets, door canopies and other fittings, including sheet metal door and window frames adapted to be snapped into suitable openings in the wall sections and carrying doors and windows which may be opened and shut.

A still further object is to provide a kit of the above nature in which the various wall components, while primarily adapted to be cemented together, are of such stability and dimensional accuracy that they may be combined in take-down relation while arriving experimentally at the final design desired.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become evident during the course of the following description in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an outside elevation of a typical wall section;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the same in the plane 22 of Fig. 1;

Figure 3 is an outside elevation of a side wall section having vertically staggered brick course extensions or teeth adapted to right hand interlocking with the section shown in Figs. 1 and 2;

Figure 4 shows a wall section similar to that of Fig. 3 but adapted to left hand interlocking;

Figure 5 shows a section identical in general dimensions to that of Fig. 1 but diifering therefrom in door and/ or window opening arrangements;

Figures 6 and 7 illustrate gable wall sections with and without a door opening respectively;

Figure 8 shows a typical gable roof truss member;

Figures 9 and 10 illustrate roof sheets in opened and folded conditions respectively;

Figures 11 and 12 are respectively plan and end views of a door canopy member;

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Figure 13 is a front view of a door-frame and door combination;

Figure 14 is a side view of the same showing the door in open position;

Figure 15 is a front view of a window frame and window combination;

'Figures 16 and 17 are plan and front views respective ly of a single whole brick;

Figure 18 shows a half-brick;

Figures 19 and 20 are perspective views of a miniature concrete block and half-block respectively;

Figure 21 is a perspective view of the assembled wall and roof girder structure of a typical house design;

Figure 22 is a similar view of a house of different design but completed with roof, doors, foundation; etc.

Figure 23 is a back view illustrating the manner in which a number of similar sections such as that of Figure 3 may be directly joined to produce a longer wall of the same right or left hand characteristics;

Figure 24 illustrates in plan view how the single bricks I may be combined with the prefabricated sections to extend further the size and variety of optional building designs made available; and

Figure 25 is a cross sectional view of a combination adapted to flat roof construction.

Miniature brick building structures intended for assembly by the user have hitherto generally fallen into one or the other of two categories. in the first, a complete house of fixed design is furnished in knock-down form, the walls usually being made of sheet plastic, card-board or sheet metal pressed and/or colored to resemble brick assemblies. This type of house requires practically no skill in assembly, being essentially a toy for very young children, as the fixed design allows no exercise of in genuity, lacking the flexibility desirable for use by older children, students, or in experimental architectural setups.

in the second category the principal wall elements furnished are merely miniature bricks, individual or in some cases in the form of a strip representative of two or three bricks laid end to end. To construct a model building from these materials the elements must be individually laid in courses throughout, laying first the bottom course and following with the successive higher courses in substantially the same manner as bricks are laid in ordinary full size building practice. While such a system obvious- 1y allows for flexibility in design, it presents several disadvantages. For example, the process of building brick by brick or strip by strip is laborious and unduly timeconsuming, particularly when the projected building is of considerable extent, calling for a large amount of tediously repetitive placing of elements to form even routine wall structures. Again, this type of construction does not lend itself well to trial or experimental architectural study, wherein it is desirable first to construct the building temporarily and subject to change, since unless the single bricks or strips are initially cemented or otherwise secured tightly together (rendering subsequent alteration difficult or impossible), the loose wall assemblies lack suflicient stability to provide successful support for them selves and for trial roof structures, etc. This lack of stability is augmented by the nature of the materials from which such toy bricks have been made, namely wood, plastic, linoleum and like substances which are usually light in weight and more or less liable to warpage and distortion from exposure to temperature changes and/or moisture.

The present invention avoids the aboveunentioned dis advantages in the following manner:

Each kit contains, in addition to a supply of single bricks and half bricks such as those shown in Figures 16 and 18, a number of types of units each representative of a pre-fabricated brick wall section. These units, as well as the single bricks, are preferably cast in rubber molds or the like of a stone composition material such as that known commercially as Hydro-Stone or Hydrocal, high-strength gypsum compounds covered in US. Patents Nos. 1,901,051, 1,901,053 1,901,056, and 2,032,- 071, and having the qualities of inertness, substantial weight, retention of dimensional accuracy of the finished casting regardless of temperature changes and moisture, and realism in the representation of actual bricks.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the numeral 30 designate a typical wall section having a central door opening 31, five window openings 32, and two small openings 33 adapted to receive a door canopy member hereinafter described. Grooves 34 in the front face divide the surface into the semblance of a large number of bricks laid in courses with the usual staggered arrangement. The left and right ends 35 and 36 are symmetrical, carrying projections or teeth 37 each representing the ends of two brick courses with intermediate notches 38 of similar vertical dimension except in the case of the upper corner notches, which represent the height of a single row or course. The depth of each notch 38 is equal to one-half the length of a brick. The thickness of the wall is also equal to one-half a brick length, and the rear face 39,

Fig. 2, is preferably made plain, without brick indications.

Figure 3 shows a relatively short blank wall section 40 of the same height as section 36 and having its toothed left end 41 arranged to match the right end 36 of section 10 so that it may be interlocked therewith either in the same plane to form an extension or at right angles to form a corner, exterior or interior as desired. The right end 42 duplicates the right end 36 of the section 10.

Figure 4 shows a section 43 similar to section 40 but of left-hand construction, i.e., its right end 44 is formed to fit the left end 35 of section 10, the left end 45 of section 43 again being a duplicate of the left end 35. While in the present embodiment the use of an odd number of courses or layers of bricks in the various sections is preferred as producing architectural assemblies of most agreeable proportion, it will be obvious that if desired the sections may incorporate an even number of courses. In this case the right-hand and left-hand sections 40 and 43 may be of identical design, it being only necessary to invert either type to convert it to the other.

Figure shows a symmetrical wall section 46 similar in shape and dimension to section 30 of Fig. 1, but with fewer window openings 32 and minus door and canopy openings as shown. Figures 6 and 7 show typical gable wall sections 47 and 48 respectively, these sections having vertical sides of the same shape and dimensions as the side edges 41 and 44 of sections 40 and 43.

Both sections 47 and 48 are provided with two main window openings 32 and a small upper window or ventilator opening 49, while section 47 also has a door opening 31 and canopy openings 33. In the preferred embodiment shown the upper or gable portions are made plain in representation of stucco or the like, but obviously, if desired, the effect of brick work may be carried to the tops.

Figure 8 shows a gable roof truss 50, preferably of the same stone composition as the brick structures and matching the gables of sections 47 and 48. Each rafter of the truss terminates in a rectangular downward extension 51 spaced inwardly from the lower ends of the outer slopes by a distance equal to the thickness of the abovedescribed wall sections. A roof member 52, Fig. 9, made of an easily cuttable sheet material such as pressed board grooved on the outer side in representation of shingles or slates, has sides of greater sloping extent than the slopes of sections 47, 48 and the truss 51 so as to form overhanging eaves when placed thereon. The roof member is bent sharply at the peak 53 to form a hinge, allow- 4 ing the member to be folded flat as shown in Fig. 10, for storage or shipment.

The tapered door canopy member 54, Figs. 11 and 12, is provided with rear projection 55 substantially the size of half a brick and adapted to fit snugly in the previously noted openings 33 in either of sections 30 or 47. This canopy is preferably made of the same stone material as the wall sections.

Referring to Figs. 13 and 14, the numeral 56 designates a door frame of thin sheet metal, its height being the same as that of the door openings 31 in the wall sections. Upper and lower tabs 57 extend rearwardly a distance at least equal to the thickness of the wall sections, these tabs being of a width substantially equal to that of the door openings 31 so as to fit snugly therein. A sheet metal door 58 is hinged in small forwardly projecting tabs 59, being adapted to open and shut in a realistic manner. A window frame 60, similarly constructed but proportioned to fit or snap snugly in each of the window openings 32, carries two hinged sashes 61 which are also adapted to open and close.

Figures 16 and 17 illustrate a single brick 62 of the same size and proportions as the simulated bricks of the wall sections, its width being equal to the wall thickness and its length double the width. The edges 63 of the face are bevelled slightly, so that when two bricks are laid together the adjacent bevels form a groove to simulate the mortar joint. The kit also includes halfbricks 64, Fig. 18, and simulated hollow concrete or cinder blocks 65 and half blocks 66, the full blocks 65 having all exterior dimensions double those of the single bricks 62.

The stone composition of which the various wall sections, brick, etc. are made is colored in appropriate hues, such as red or buff for the brick members and light grey for the concrete blocks. As the color extends throughout the entire body of each member, if in any building combination additional bevelling, rounding corners or other alteration is desired, this may readily be done by filling or sawing, without the necessity for any subsequent painting or otherwise re-finishing.

Figure 21 illustrates the manner in which the previously described wall sections may readily be assembled to form a basic building structure, in this case having two gable wings connected by a rear cross bay. The fronts of the two wings are formed by two sections 48, Fig. 7, while the front wall of the cross bay is provided by a section 30, Fig. 1. A relatively narrow section 43, Fig. 4, extends rearwardly from the right end of the left front gable section 48 to the cross wall member 30, being inter-locked in with these members to form an exterior and an interior wall angle therewith respectively. Similarly, a section 40, Fig. 3, joins the left end of the right-hand front gable section 48 to the right end of the section 30, thus completing the walls of a shallow court. The outer side walls of the two wings comprise sections 30 extending rearwardly to junctions with rear gable sections 47, the latter in turn being joined by a lateral section 46, Fig. 5, thus completing the rear wall of the cross bay.

An important feature of the present invention lies in the horizontal proportion among the basic wall sections, which proportion is shown in Figures 1 to 7. Referring back to these figures, it will be seen that the over-all horizontal dimension of either section 30 or section 46 is one half brick length less than the sum of the over-all horizontal dimensions of either section 47 or 48 and either section 40 or 43. Referring again to Figure 21, the result of the above proportion on the illustrated structure is to make the over-all depth of the cross-bay wall combination the same as the width of a gable section 48, allowing roof truss members 50 to be fitted to span the cross bay and support the roof structure thereof. It will be obvious that the above horizontal proportioning also provides great convenience in setting up various building structural combinations other than that illustrated by way of example.

Due to the substantial weight and sustained accuracy of fit made possible in the various parts largely by the use of the stone material therein, a structure such as that illustrated in Fig. 21 may readily be set up on a flat surface without initial use of adhesives, i.e., for trial layout or for amusement. The desired final design having been determined, the various elements may be secured permanently together by a suitable adhesive such as plastic cement, the adhesive layer comprising only a thin film, due to the close initial fitof the parts. 'The main elements having been joined, the roof, Window and door fittings, etc., may be added to complete the assembly.

Figure 22 shows a completed house model, the design illustrated being that of a typical L-shaped house instead of the double wing design of Fig. 21, but constructed in the same procedural manner. This model is provided with a foundation of blocks 65, Fig. 19, together with any required half-blocks. As the above-described simulated brick wall sections when joined obviously comprise the proper layout for the foundation, an advantageous method is first to assemble the permanent wall structure, allow its adhesive to set, then to raise the assembly and insert the foundation to match. However, such procedure is entirely optional, as of course if desired for layout practice and the like, an accurate plan of the foundation may be made initially on the fiat supporting surface.

The window and door frames are snapped into place, being cemented therein if desired. Since as previously stated, the rear tabs 57 of the door frame 56, Fig. 14, and similarly those of the window frames, are of substan tially the same widths, as the orifices into which they fit, they form upper and lower liners for the latter. Thus in the case of the door frame, the lower tab 57 forms an inner door-step, concealing any underlying foundation joints from sight when the door is opened, while the similar tabs on the window frames form inner Window sills. The door canopy 54 is assembled in its openings or sockets 33, Fig. 1, and a stoop or pair of steps 67 may be built of individual bricks 62 as shown. To complete the realistic general effect, a chimney 68 may be con structed of the individual bricks 62, a suitable hole being cut in the roof 52. before the latter is secured in place. The roof members are cut to provide the bevel juncture of the two Wings.

In assemblies such as those illustrated it will be evident that variations may be made by the interchangeable use of sections 30 and 46, depending on the desired location of doors. Also variations in extent and proportion may be made by the use of a number of the monolithic sec tions fitted together in the same plane to form a single extended wall. For example, Figure 23 illustrates the use of three sections 40 fitted together to produce a long blank Wall, the assembly being viewed from the plain rear side in order to show the interlocking junctions most clearly. As the toothed left and right edges of such a composite section have the same aspects as the corresponding edges of each single section, it will be evident that the combina* tion may be interlocked, in the same manner as previously described, with any of the symmetrical sections such as section 36 or 47.

In some cases the projected design of a building may call for a long wall comprising two or more symmetrical sections such as section 46. Since the toothed ends of such sections cannot directly interlock, the joint is effected by filling the openings formed between, above, and below the abutting pairs of teeth or projections with the requisite number of single bricks 62, the latter, as previously noted, being of proper dimensions to fit snugly in such combination. Figure 24 shows a simple plan view of a structure incorporating composite walls of this type, the layout being suitable for a small apartment building with a central court 69. It will be noted that the two main wings of the building have walls composed of the various standard sections joined directly together as in Figs. 21 and 22. The rear Wall, however, consists of two sections 46 with a section 30 between them and joined thereto by inserted individual bricks 62 in the manner described above.

Similarly, the lateral wall 71 comprising the rear inner I wall of the court 6? is made up of a section 30 joined to sections 40 and 43 by inserted bricks 62. If it should be desired to make these Walls somewhat longer, this may be done by separating the standard sections the required distance and building the additional joining portions of suitable combinations of individual bricks and half-bricks to preserve the staggered aspect. Figure 24 also illustrates a pair of chimneys 68, built of the bricks 62 and cemented to the rear Wall 70 in final assembly.

The foregoing description and illustrations, while necessarily covering directly only a few specific examples, are believed to make plain how the provision of the cooperative monolithic wall sections and single bricks makes possible a practically unlimited range in design. Thus the single bricks and half-bricks not only are useful for adding steps, chimneys and the like, but also act as adapters and auxiliaries for the monolithic sections, while the latter provide stability and the ability to build extensive structures with inherent accuracy and with minimum effort and loss of time, as previously mentioned.

As a further example of versatility, sections such as section 39 may be altered by filling window and/or door openings with combinations of bricks and half-bricks, these openings being of proper proportions to receive such blanking combinations in harmony with the surrounding brick-Work.

The provision of the plain flat back surface on the monolithicsections allows them to be used for building models having other than brick appearance, for example smooth surfaced structures which may be painted to resemble stucco or wood. For this purpose the wall sections are assembled in the same manner as previously described except that the sections are reversed to bring their smooth sides outward, any visible joints being filled with cement before painting.

Figure 25 illustrates the use of individual bricks superimposed on standard sections to produce a fiat roofed type of building. As shown, three courses of bricks 62 are laid on the top of the walls formed of sections 40, 43 and 46, certain bricks of the lowest course being laid cross-wise so as to project inward. These inwardly extending bricks form a support for the flat roof material 52, the latter preferably being secured to them with its plain face upward, while the upper two courses of bricks form a realistic parapet. For such structures the flat topped wall sections are particularly adapted, but if it is desired to incorporate a section such as section 47 Without its upper gable, the latter may be sawed off without loss of finish as previously noted. However, it will be understood that the particular monolithic sections shown herein are presented as examples representative of many standard shapes which may be included in the construction kit, i.e., sections such as 47 but without the gable, as well as other variations, may be furnished as initial components.

In other words, while the invention has been set forth in preferred form, it isv not limited to the precise structures illustrated, as various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a set of miniature building components, in com bination, three differing types of monolithic members of molded stone composition each grooved on its front face in representation of a wall section prefabricated from miniature bricks laid in a plurality of superimposing courses and having toothed vertical edges comprising separated horizontal projections each representative of a pre-determined number of said courses, the thickness of each of said members being substantially equal to onehalf the length of one of said simulated bricks, said toothed edges of each of said types of members being length of one of said simulated bricks, the over-all horizontal extent of one of said types being less by one-half the length of one simulated brick than the sum of the over-all horizontal extents of said other two types.

2. In a set of miniature building components, in combination, a plurality of differing types of monolithic members of molded stone composition each representative of a wall section prefabricated from miniature bricks laid in a plurality of superimposing courses and having toothed vertical edges comprising separated horizontal projections each representative of an extension of a predetermined number of said courses of one-half the length of one of said bricks, the thickness of each of said members being one-half the said length of one of said bricks whereby said toothed edges of each of said types of members are adapted to interlock uniformly both in plane and in right angle relation with at least one toothed edge of each of said other types, a plurality of miniature individual bricks matching in size and material the simulated bricks of said wall sections and adapted to be 25 fitted into the interstices between said projections in registry with said courses, at least one of said types of wall sections comprising a gable end wall, a plurality of monolithic gable roof trusses of said stone material corresponding in upper contour to the upper contour of said gable end wall section and having downward terminal extensions spaced inward from the lower corners of the two sloping sides of each truss by a distance substantially equal to the thickness of said wall section, and a roof member of sheet material grooved on its upper side in representation of shingles and adapted to be fitted to said upper contour of said gable end wall and said gable truss members.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,461,538 McKenzie July 10, 1923 1,941,436 Haupt Dec. 26, 1933 2,053,412 Aberson Sept. 8, 1936 2,057,942 Fay Oct. 20, 1936 2,122,577 Mattes et al. July 5, 1938 2,461,535 Erhardt Feb. 15, 1949 2,600,900 McNeill June 17, 1952 2,754,620 Gilbert et a1. July 17, 1956 V FOREIGN PATENTS 607,838 Great Britain Sept. 6, 1948 

